


The Gods and Their Literary Works

by Wintercameandwent



Series: Living with Regret of the Chance Not Taken [2]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Aegon and Rhaenys Targaryen Live, Alternate Universe - Rhaegar Won, Don't Like Don't Read, Elia Martell Lives, Gen, Jon Snow's Name is Jaehaerys, Lyanna Stark Lives, No character bashing, Not Beta Read, POV Rhaella Targaryen, Rhaegar Targaryen Lives, Rhaegar loves Elia and Lyanna, not Rhaegar and Lyanna friendly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:15:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22110919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wintercameandwent/pseuds/Wintercameandwent
Summary: Rhaegar learns of Elia and his children's survival through an unexpected channel.EDIT:I would recommend you read part 1. Without the context, this story might seem a bit off.
Relationships: Elia Martell/Rhaegar Targaryen, Lyanna Stark/Rhaegar Targaryen
Series: Living with Regret of the Chance Not Taken [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1591549
Comments: 29
Kudos: 121
Collections: Southern Renaissance (Dorne Renaissance)





	The Gods and Their Literary Works

**Author's Note:**

> As promised...I found myself with a little bit of time and a chapter that didn't want to let me go. This story comes to us from Rhaella's POV so keep in mind her interpretation of other characters are comprised of her own thoughts and opinions. 
> 
> I have been blown away by the response to this story, which originally was a one-off. Thanks for the support, comments, kudos, and subscriptions. 
> 
> I make no promises about when I will complete the second part, but hopefully in the next month. I have 2 long holidays coming up...perhaps I will find the time to write it. I really do need to get back to my other fic...lol.
> 
> Until then...enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing.

If there is anything Rhaella Targaryen has learned in her nearly six decades of life is that you never truly know what the Gods have in store for you. We are not the writers of our own story. We are simply the characters in the story the Gods chose to tell, meanwhile the soul that lives within the body feels the variance of joy and suffering as each chapter turns. 

When she thinks about her own saga she finds herself deciding that the majority of her novel has been a tragic one. Whether it was the loss of a first love or the duty to marry her brother, the suffering she endured through her miscarriages, and eventual repeated assaults on her person by her husband...a twisted man in a twisted marriage, it is in her mind’s eye that she finds the worse pain comes not from Aerys but from her own failure to see the weakness of mind in her son...a weakness that men in her family had suffered in consecutively succession since Aegon the Unlikely.

Her grandfather, Aegon, was consumed with the lore that spoke of bringing dragons back to existence...Summerhall burned and many died for it. 

Her father, Jaehaerys, believed that the _Prince that was Promised_ would come from the fruits of Aerys and her union...they were forced to marry instead of marrying for love as her parents had, and her purgatory began. 

Her husband, Aerys, his mind fractured as he got older and soon was convinced that plots to bring his demise were constantly in play, all of this began before the Defiance of Duskendale...and he lost all awareness of wisdom bringing his sense of cruelty and madness to the people.

Then her son, Rhaegar, continued with his grandfather’s obsession and included another, _the Dragon must have three heads_...and the realm tore itself apart over it.

The commonality of these four fixations was that they all led to naught...the only thing that came from it all was pain and suffering for so many on insurmountable levels that it defies all capable understanding. Yes, she failed with Rhaegar...and in doing so she failed the young Dornish woman who she loved as a daughter, Rhaenys and Aegon...and the grandsons that came from the _other union_.

Oh, so she thought.

“I cannot believe the Queen did not come.” Jon Connington speaks from her right. Rhaella turns her eyes away from the sea, away from the ships with the Targaryen sigil on their black sails, away from her son who stands on one of those vessels as it heads South...to Dorne.

Seeing that her grandsons and daughter had taken their leave, she returns her attention to Lord Connington and observes that the man has aged well as only a few white hairs have made their appearance on his red mane, as she looks at him she wonders if in another version of his book would he have survived the War of the Usurpers...how would his story have ended?

Her silence is a response, but it would be poor manners to leave him to interpret her thoughts. If what Rhaegar searches for does exist there can be no room for giving power to others as they tell the world of your opinions. The world will begin to think such false points of view as truth and the effects of such will leave you battling to clear your good name against false tales. Unfortunately, by then the damage is already done to your character and relations. 

While Lyanna is _not_ her favorite person, she is the mother of her grandchildren, she has been a good wife to her son, caring towards her good-brother and good-sister...though Viserys politely maintains his distance, respectful to her good-mother, a dutiful Queen...though that recognition was hard earned and still requires steady attention. Rhaella can understand why the woman in Lyanna refused her husband. Unfortunately, she is also a queen...so to most it looks like a Queen refusing her King. Such a life they lead where their lives are not their own. Lyanna can feel what she does, but she cannot act on them...not like she once had. There are consequences for such acts and the younger woman is aware of that. Those days are beyond her now...or so Rhaella hopes.

“She is hurt. To Lyanna, he is on a fool’s errand. Going to Dorne in search of Elia and the children is a type of madness that could have been justified shortly upon his return to Kings Landing some twenty years ago. A man in the throes of grief. But this...this is entirely different. Too much time has passed for this behavior to stand.”

“So, you agree that there is no truth to this tale?” Connington looks at her, and Rhaella can see that what he really wants is for her to reveal an opinion different from his own. For if she says it out loud than it must be truth, and he can ignore that voice in his head that tells him something different. 

Rhaella looks out to the sea once again, as the small fleet of naval ships that carry her son and King away from the safety of their clutch. She recalls the day that Varys, the Master of Whisperers, requested a private audience with the King. The news he shared moved Rhaegar to demand the presence of his wife, mother, and sons. 

As they began to enter his private solar, still in their night clothes with their robes wrapped tightly against their bodies, Rhaella and Lyanna sat at the chairs that stood before her son’s desk. Her grandsons behind them...standing at attention with their hands behind their backs, wearing tunics, breeches, and boots leaving Rhaella to think they had been comfortable in their rooms, but not yet in their beds. Varys stood before them, standing in the corner of the room, his head down low, hands crossed in front of him, his face apprehensive. 

Rhaella took in her son’s demeanor for it was not in his nature to cause much ruckus about the castle, especially at such a late hour, but his countenance was off and it concerned her. In fact, it did more than concern her, it created a panicked feeling, a sensation she hadn’t felt since Aerys sequestered the young men who came with Brandon Stark. A feeling that built into a rising crescendo of desperate fear of what was to come. 

“Rhaegar, husband, what is it? What brings us all here?” Rhaella turns to her good-daughter, she catches Aemon and Jaehaerys out of the corner of her eye. They each look at each other, all seemed unknowing of the cause that brought them all together on this night.

The King was staring out of the window behind his desk. Dressed as he had been at dinner, he stood with his long silver hair trailing behind his broad shoulders, his spine straight, his hands resting behind his back. A posture he had not altered as they entered the room and found their positions. 

Her son’s voice was distant and hard with a hint of shock weaved within each word that left his lips. “They live. They still live.”

Rhaella felt a paralysis that devoured her. 

“What? Who? Rhaegar, please I do not understand what you are saying?” Lyanna stood, her voice expressing the confusion that seemed to appear likewise on her sons faces. 

“Varys” Rhaegar still had not turned away from his position.

“My Queen. It has been brought to my attention that there has been a young man found in the frequent company of Prince Oberyn when he visits certain... _establishments that cater to gentlemen of a certain...caliber_ .”

“Please Lord Varys! I hope the predilection of Prince Oberyn _of Dorne_ is not the cause of my husband’s unsettled state.” Lyanna’s voice was angry, but Rhaella thought that it was fear more than true anger that could be heard for she would not let the man speak beyond his first words.

“I apologize my Queen, but the young man in question has Valyrian features...silver hair, indigo eyes, a tall stature, and broad build. When the young man was noticed, my informant continued to learn more about him. He travels around Dorne with Prince Oberyn and his daughters or Prince Doran’s children, but he can also be found in the company of two young women...one with Valyrian features, but the other...well she is Dornish in looks, with eyes so purple they are often mistaken for black.”

Rhaella cannot take her eyes of off the Spider, but she can hear as Lyanna drops heavily into the seat she had occupied before.

“It seems these three young people are young adults, about the ages Princess Rhaenys and Prince Aegon would be as of now. It seems as though they live in the region controlled by Lemonwood...House Dalt.”

The silence was deafening. Somehow Rhaella found the strength to asks one question.

“Is that all?”

The bald eunuch took a deep breath before replying to her. “No Queen Mother. I have learned that the three young people are siblings. When they are not traversing Dorne with the Prince and his family, then they can be seen escorting an older Dornish woman through Planky Town. A woman who by description looks like the Princess Elia.”

Her grandsons were silent much like their father, Lyanna’s breath trembled upon each inhalation or exhalation, and Rhaella could barely breathe.

“How did you learn of this information? How much do you trust this informant Lord Varys?” Lyanna’s voice a faint whisper in pain and disbelief. Rhaella could only close her eyes tightly to brace herself against the emotions pushing at her from each person in the room...each with their own motivation for their feelings.

“I was first made aware by Lord Petyr Baelish. As a wealthy business owner in Kings Landing, he is always on the search for procuring the best...assets...from other kingdoms to bring to his establishments in Westeros. He was in Dorne when he noticed the young man.”

“A young man who frequents brothel’s...” Lyanna murmured. Rhaella could see Rhaegar turn his head to the side, yet not making a full turn to see them all. 

In a hard voice he speaks, “Those in glass houses, Lyanna...” 

Lyanna just glared at Rhaegar’s back. 

Varys cleared his throat. Rhaella could tell he was uncomfortable. “To my understanding, he doesn’t partake of the advantages that avail themselves. He shares ale with the ladies and indulges in conversation until he takes his leave. It was his features paired with his unusual behavior that caught the eye of Lord Baelish. I must say that Lord Baelish is always careful when he shares information. I just took his morsel of intelligence and did my own research using my own network. All discovery was concluded, my Queen, before brought to the King for the revelation of this information would have cataclysmic consequences for so many.”

The crackle and pop of the wood in the hearth was the producer of nose within the chamber. Rhaella had no platform to rest her thoughts as they flooded her mind and attacked her senses. 

Elia. Rhaenys. Aegon...and another.

“Lord Varys, you mentioned another young woman who resembles a Targaryen. Why is she of note? I can understand how the description of the two other women and the man would be cause for comment, but my father only had one daughter.” Jaehaerys spoke, the young man crouched down beside his mother’s chair, holding her trembling hand. 

A growl forced its way out of Rhaegar’s throat, drawing every set of eyes onto him. She watched as his hands tightened, his head turned towards Varys. She could not see his eyes, but she could see Varys’s visage, and the man appeared contrite with a healthy dose of fear. 

“My Prince...” Varys began.

“Crown Prince, Lord Varys. Do not forget yourself, Ser.” Lyanna snapped at the man. Rhaella understood Lyanna’s impulse to blame the man for he was the bearer of news that stood to destroy the delicate union she had with Rhaegar. But at the same time Varys was not at fault so she needs to temper herself...a skill the Wolf Queen still continues to struggle with. 

“My apologies, your Grace. Crown Prince Jaehaerys, there was a rumor going about the keep during the time of Princess Elia... confinement...during the Usurper’s War. She was seldom seen outside of her chambers and that of the nursery. Those who had the opportunity to interact with her always found her either in bed or in a chair wrapped in blankets. Word was she could never seem to find warmth, but other words told of elixirs and unusual request for certain food items. There was talk of her being with child, but when all thought her to be dead no one saw the benefit in informing your father of these suspicions. It had been decided by the previous members of the small council that enough loss had been felt and there was no need for more.”

“Could she have been with child Rhaegar?” Lyanna spoke. Her voice sounding small and unsure to Rhaella’s ears. 

Rhaegar was silent...longer than was appropriate, until he finally confessed...now a possibility was brought to life. 

“Yes. She could have been.”

“You said she could not bear you another?” Lyanna’s voice began to rise.

Rhaella’s heart broke for the woman seated beside her...not an easy feat to accomplish as Rhaella has always kept the Northerner at a distance.

“Mother” Her sons attempted to console her, each young man surrounding her, touching her...a hand, an arm, her shoulder. Rhaella didn’t think that would be enough comfort for the woman...not when another part of the naïve girl she had once been was again resurrected and killed all within the same moment. 

“I said the maester did not recommend that she carry another child. I never told you she was not capable of it. That is neither here nor there Lyanna. I had not intended to get her with child regardless. A babe quickening was never a thought in my head the last time I...” He stopped speaking, perhaps remembering who else remained in the room, Rhaella thought, or perhaps he didn’t want to share...Elia with them...as he is known to keep thoughts of her and their children close to his heart. 

“A babe quickening was never a thought in your mind the last time you _laid with her_. You still laid with her, even after you swore yourself to me.”

“Lyanna this is not the place for this conversation.” Rhaegar’s voice was...controlled fury. Never a good thing in Rhaella’s opinion, for at some point all that control is released...on someone. 

“Perhaps not my King, but we are going to proceed with it regardless.” Lyanna’s anger a living thing. 

Rhaegar spun around with pained anger in his gaze...that deep-seated violence flickered around the indigo of his eyes. Rhaella gasped. She could not make herself stop. The last time Rhaegar looked like this he was standing in the ruins of what was once the nursery and Elia’s chambers. 

“Out! Everyone get out now!” Rhaegar roared and Rhaella knew who would be the beneficiary of his anger and loss of control...his Wolf Queen...a match suited for her ire was a palpable thing. 

Rhaella stood, she accepted Jaehaerys’s arm as she followed her grandsons and Varys out of the chamber. Just as the guard began to shut the door she saw Lyanna launch herself at her son, and her son’s words just made themselves heard before the door shut. 

“Yes, I slept with my wife and I do not apologize for it. I swore myself to you but that oath never removed Elia from my regard. If you thought it so, then that was a lie of your own creation Lyanna.”

Rhaella thought once again that the hell they all suffered had pockets of reprieve, and perhaps their moment of pardon was over and back on the river of purgatory they were set to sail. Elia...alive. Her grandchildren...alive. 

How many times had she wished for it? It is funny how the Gods play with us all, for who would have thought that they would have answered her prayers, Rhaegar’s prayers, Lyanna’s prayers..., Viserys prayers...and to be answered in such a fashion. While there is a part of her that is hurt and angry by Elia’s deception, she understands her good-daughter’s reasons for doing so. 

The Rhaegar who was ruled by prophecy and destiny he sought to make, that was an unpredictable man. He left her and it turns out she found a choice...a choice to save herself and their children...and she took it. It seems that the Elia that Rhaegar once knew is not the Elia he will find. But betrayal has a fondness for profoundly changing a person.

A flurry of activity began shortly after Rhaegar revealed to his current family that his first family was living in Dorne. Rhaella told Daenerys, her young daughter worried about the implication this revelation would have for the tenuous relationship between Dorne and The Six Kingdoms. Would war come again? These were answer Rhaella could not offer her child...yet a woman grown betrothed to the Lord of Storms End.

With Viserys, she sent him a letter by raven, requesting that he come back to the Red Keep...post haste.

As for Rhaegar, he called his small council and shared his findings. The men agreed that he should contact Dorne to get confirmation from them. Rhaegar did not trust Dorne to be honest, so he agreed to send a letter after he return from Dorne...with his wife and children. In the end, the council could not sway the dragon...not the one who had awakened after such a dormant sleep.

It had been decided that a small naval fleet of five ships would sail South. In the distance fifty more ships would barricade the major trading ports. A position they will maintain until the truth is discovered without prejudice. If she is alive and comes back with him, then he will move the ships. If she does not, then there will be war. 

When the wind sways a bit of her hair to cover her eyes she gently tucks her hair back. Turning to Lord Connington she think about his question for one more moment... _“So, you agree that there is no truth to this tale?”_ A resigned smile sets on her face, as she stares at the man who has been her son’s oldest friend...a man she is sure thinks he loves her son more than any of his wives. 

“Jon, it doesn’t really matter what I agree to. Rhaegar believes it to be so and who is able to challenge him on his impressions. But if you must know my mind, then no I do not agree. I wish it weren’t so if only for the reason that we...the nation...has fought so hard to find a stride that allows us to move forward since the foolishness that was Rhaegar and Lyanna elopement. While acknowledging that this has the possibility to undo it all, it serves no one to deny the change that is to come.”

Both she and Jon turn back to the ships that now have turned into specks of dust on the sea, while gone from their view, the intent of Rhaegar ever present and foreboding. Once again Rhaella thinks the Gods with their odd sense of humor must have acquired new parchments, inks, and quills...and a tanker of ale as they prepare to write the next chapter of this book. She only hopes that the unwitting living characters are strong enough to survive what is to come.


End file.
